When I first saw the ad about the LG Optimus One sale at Yugatech’s blog, I didn’t decide at once that I will attend the said event since I really like to purchase an HTC or Samsung phone if I’ll be going to the Android path.

It was only Friday (Nov 12) that I decided that I will try my luck on the said event because I would have been able to purchase an Android phone at a really low price then use the remaining budget to buy something else.

I believe we can now feel the Christmas breeze in the air (or is it just the breeze from an upcoming typhoon? just kidding). In a few days time, people around the globe will again be busy shopping for presents, ornaments, or even for food to be served on Christmas Eve. Little children will now start to be nice, hoping that Santa Claus will drop them a gift on that special day. We’ll soon be hearing people singing Christmas carols in front of our homes.

Christmas is one of the most celebrated days in the Philippines. This is usually the time when families get to celebrate a holiday as a whole, the time when the foreign remittances does a great impact on our economy, and the time when crimes are at a high rate too.

Most of the areas in the upper half of the Philippines have experienced the onslaught of the typhoons that came one after the other. As I’ve observed though, no other nation or nationality can compare to the resilience of our countrymen. We have already mastered the art of smiling under pressure (I guess grace under pressure would be a better description of how we can easily adapt to the abrupt changes that comes into our lives).

Well, I won’t go further on discussing on how Christmas started (there are lots of materials about this topic already). We now proceed to my Christmas Wishlist!

For the non-material stuff, the following items below are my topmost wishes:

Spend the holiday with everyone dear to me.

Good health for each and everyone.

World peace (sure feels like an answer in a beauty pageant).

For the material stuff, I’d really love to have the items below (I’ve been really good this year Santa!):

Bloggers from Barrio Siete unite to provide assistance to our fellow Filipinos who were greatly affected by tropical storm Ondoy.

Please see the excerpt below from the B7 entry on how you can provide help too:

My fellow bloggers, readers and lurkers; it breaks our heart seeing all these images and watching the videos coming from Manila – the wrath and devastation not only to properties but also to the lives of our fellow Filipinos. Tropical typhoon Ondoy is not only creating havoc but also bringing epic floods in the Metropolitan Manila area.

In the spirit of Barrio Siete, I invite you all to join our Bayanihan Fund Drive: Donate to Ondoy Flood Victims. Very simply:

1.) Make a donation to our Bayanihan Fund Drive: Donate to Ondoy Flood Victims. If you can’t, then help us by making this viral and create an entry entitled: “Bayanihan Fund Drive: Donate to Ondoy Flood Victims“. A link to this original entry will be appreciated where your readers can make a donation. Please leave us a note in the comment section if you are joining so we can list your entry, in case the pingback doesn’t work.

3.) We will list the names of the donors in a worksheet, their organization and/or their websites, unless they prefer to be anonymous.

4.) The listing will be updated regularly and will be posted here in Barrio Siete Dot com.

5.) We are only accepting monetary donations in currencies accepted by Paypal.

6.) All donations will be remitted only to the Philippine National Red Cross in Manila. (We have not made any contact with them yet.)

7.) If you prefer: You can make donations directly to the Philippine National Red Cross. Here is the link: Ways to donate

In Barrio Siete, this is where you can make your donation. We will in turn, turn this over to the Philippine National Red Cross.

8.) Reyna Elena’s entry on Ondoy here is getting a lot of messages from readers asking for help and assistance. If you are reading this, please head over to that entry and respond to some of the questions if you know because it kills me that I don’t know the answer to their questions or their plea for help. Hopefully, there is one here who could help.

I hope the politicians, especially those who are joining the 2010 race for Presidency, will set aside their personal agendas and help with sincerity. This is not a time for campaigning! This is a time for action.

Last Sept 19-22, my girlfriend got admitted at the Medical City in Ortigas due to dengue. I got really nervous when I’ve heard she was diagnosed with that illness since dengue has no vaccine or direct cure for it. Basically, prevention and early detection plus hydration is the key. Good thing I was able to ask my cousin’s friend if I were to accompany my girlfriend back to the hospital since we’ve observed that her fever was on and off. The doctor then asked her to be admitted since she wasn’t able to eat well and was feeling a bit nauseated. It was great that she was able to recover (platelet count drops to a really low level then once it goes up then that’s the sign that you are getting better from the illness) in just a span of three days – she’s got a good immune system and a great fighting spirit.